Guardians of the Galaxy 3’s Chukwudi Iwuji Reveals He Wants to Play DC’s Etrigan The Demon

Chukwudi Iwuji is getting a massive career boost thanks to his performance as The High Evolutionary in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. However, Iwuji got his role as Marvel’s maniacal geneticist villain only after working with James Gunn on The Suicide Squad spinoff series Peacemaker. Now that Gunn has taken on a leadership role at DC Studios, a lot of fans are expecting him to (as usual) tap the collection of actors he frequently works for new DCU roles. 

During an interview with ComicBook’s Phaze Zero podcast, Chukwudi Iwuji revealed that there is one DC character that does fascinate him as a potential role: Etrigan The Demon! 

Iwuji couldn’t initially remember the name DC’s The Demon, but he definitely had a clear explanation for why the role is one he’d be interested in: He comes from the days of Merlin and he lives today, right now, and he sort of has a demon inside of him that comes out… [Interviewers provide the name] Yes! Etrigan! 

In fact I was talking to a friend about it:  I was like ‘This character… this is Jeykll and Hyde in the DC world,” Iwuji continued. “So Etrigan. If you told me to name one it would be Etrigan. Like I just love the idea of having two people existing in one. That’d be my DC one. Etrigan.”

Who Is DC’s Etrigan The Demon? 

In DC lore, Etrigan the Demon is a demonic entity (and half-brother of medieval wizard Merlin) bonded to the body of one Jason Blood. Blood has been given the backstory that he was a knight of Camelot (King Arthur’s court) who Merlin bound to Etrigan; or, in later retellings, he was a frustrated student of Merlin’s. In other retcons to the story, Merlin’s decision to bond Jason and Entrigan was part of a deal he struck with Lucifer. In either telling, the bonding makes Jason Blood immortal, allowing him to outlive the Medieval era and eventually resurface as a modern-day anti-hero of the DC Universe. 

Etrigan is one of the most powerful (and unique) characters of the DC supernatural universe, known for wielding hellfire and speaking his dialogue in simple rhyming couplets. He’s also often a key component in DC’s supernatural team-ups, such as Justice League Dark, having history with the likes of John Constantine, Madame Xanadu, Zatanna, and others. 

Needless to say, Etrigan could be a pivotal figure in James Gunn’s DCU Chapter One saga, “Gods and Monsters.” If he hasn’t already cast Chukwudi Iwuji in a DC role, The High Evolutionary actor would definitely be a good pick for performing the “Jekyll and Hyde” nature of Jason Blood constantly battling against having Etrigan in his head. 

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is now in theaters.